‘Do the right thing': San Francisco art bar wants stolen art work returned

Madrone Art Bar in the Western Addition said patrons at the bar stole a local artist's work, which was about to be displayed at an upcoming show.

On Thursday, the Sketchboard Collective's 12 Year Art Show opened at Madrone Art Bar in San Francisco's Western Addition neighborhood. There are more than 70 figure drawing sketches on display, but one is missing.

Madrone Art Bar owner Michael "Spike" Krouse said that some of the sketches were hung on the wall Saturday in preparation for the show. Krouse said, late Saturday night, one sketch by San Francisco artist Tracie Timmer was stolen by patrons at the bar.

Krouse and his bar manager did some "camera sleuthing" through their security cameras and found video showing one individual taking the piece off the wall, then handing it to another individual who put it under their sweatshirt. Those individuals were all seen wearing Golden State Warriors gear. Krouse figures they might have been watching the Warriors game earlier that day.

"And we were just shocked, 'cause in 20 years [in business], I think only one time have we had something else taken," Krouse said, calling this behavior from patrons "just flat-out rude" and "not cool."

Timmer, the artist of the water-color sketch, said at this point she has not filed a police report. But she does want her art back.

"I only priced it at a hundred dollars, it’s not like it’s a huge amount of money or anything, I think for me it’s more just the point," she said.

The sketch was one she did this year at a Beetlejuice-themed figure drawing session.

"It was one of my favorites I had done for a while," Timmer explained.

"I think it's just more the point of stealing from artists, when artists already struggle financially," she added.

"Right now’s a particularly hard time for artists with AI -- it’s taking a lot of jobs right now -- with the layoffs in tech, with the layoffs in animation," Timmer continued. "Pretty much everyone I know that’s a working artist right now is really hurting, so it’s an especially rough time."

The art bar posted the surveillance video on social media, asking followers to be on the lookout for Timmer's artwork.

"Maybe somebody recognizes the person or sees the art piece and says, ‘Hey man, why’d you do that?’" Krouse explained.

"Here, we appreciate the art, we don’t steal it," he added.

Timmer said she hopes whoever took her art returns it to her. Or, she said, if the thieves like her art and want to buy it, she would be alright with that too.

"I would really hope that they would come back and do the right thing, but we’ll see," she said.

The Sketchboard Collective's 12 Year Art Show will be up at the Madrone Art Bar through the end of July.